Redskins score fast in 8-1 win over Pioneers

August 28, 2013

Wapakoneta High School junior Sam Hinegardner (1), right, fights for the ball Tuesday in a non-league varsity boys soccer game against Temple Christian at Ryan Field at WHS. Hinegardner had two goals and one assist. (Staff photo/Brad Frank)

The Wapakoneta Redskins used a fast start on a warm night to earn an 8-1 win Tuesday over the Temple Christian Pioneers in a non-league varsity boys soccer game at Ryan Field.

“We started off pretty fast. We kind of kept going from there,” Wapak varsity coach Keith Rambin said Tuesday. “We got a lot of younger kids some playing time tonight. That’s always important.”

Wapak’s first goal of the game came 36 seconds into the first half, as freshman Alex Lause scored on an assist from Sam Hinegardner.

Hinegardner scored unassisted for Wapak’s second goal. Lause then assisted on a goal by Luke Williams, before Hinegardner scored again with an assist by Williams.

Temple Christian scored its first and only goal 26:06 into the first half, with Taylor Zwiebel putting one in the net.

Williams tallied a goal with 33 seconds left before halftime to make the score 5-1.

Wapak’s Collin Lenhart missed multiple opportunities for goals in the first half but rebounded in the second half to score three straight times.

He notched two goals within the first 4:16 of the second half to push the lead to 7-1.

At 9:47 in the second half, Lenhart hooked a corner kick into the net for his third straight goal and Wapak’s final of the night.

“Collin probably should have had six goals,” Rambin said. “He was beside himself at halftime. He was pressing a little bit. He had a couple opportunities in the first half that should have been in the back of the net.

“He settled down in the second half,” he said. “He hit one from the corner; you don’t see that too often. It was a nice hit.”

Rambin said despite the win, his team needs to work on the pace at which it plays.

“There’s still a lot of things we need to work on,” Rambin said. “In the first half, I don’t think we played possession soccer. We played better possession soccer in the second half.

“We wanted to turn it into a track meet,” he said. “We’ve got good team speed, but it kind of turned into not the brand of soccer we want to play all the time. We want to play possession soccer and slow it down when we want to.”

The Redskins will face Kenton on Thursday in a Western Buckeye League contest at Harmon Field on the turf.

“We feel like if we can compete anything can happen. We’re excited about the 2-0 start but it’s only two games,” Rambin said. “We’re excited about Kenton for our WBL opener. We’re focused on that.”

Rambin discussed his thoughts on playing on turf.

“We do have a lot of team speed, so you put us on the turf, it’ll make us faster. But then again, we like to run but forget about playing possession soccer, so it’s a bit of a double-edged sword,” Rambin said. “We’ve got to control the ball in the middle of the field and dictate what the defense does and not let them dictate what we do.”

Tuesday’s temperature exceeded 90 degrees. The two teams agreed to stop action and take water breaks 20 minutes into each half.

---

Follow high school volleyball coverage from the Wapakoneta Daily News on Twitter using the hashtag #wdnSOC